x-rays of before and after surgeries

[Theresa]

These are my before and after x-rays.

The first one is before any surgeries March 2004 Thorasic curve 79 Lumbar curve 44

The second one is after the first revision surgery

The last one is after the second revision surgery done on May 21, 2007. It also shows the Galveston Instrumentation to the pelvis.

[curve52]

how r u doing now,you been thru a lot hope all is well now take care :)

[crepehanger]

quite impressive !! you got a lot of correction since the beginning. what is galveston instrumentation?

keep up the good recovery! Lisa

[Theresa]

Curve 52 and Lisa,

I'm doing pretty good now! Today I am 6 weeks post op! I still have pain ecspecially when sitting. It's slowly getting better bit by bit.

Lisa,

Galvestion Instrumentation (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=1806077&dopt=Abstract). When you look at my x-rays the two screws or bolts down into the pelvis is the instrumentation.

[suzyjay]

You have been through a lot. I am glad to hear you are doing well.
God bless you.

Sue

[csbaby]

Hi Theresa,

I am very much like you, fused from T1-Sacrum. My x-rays even look like yours. Who did your surgery? Did we talk?

I am a year out from my LAST surgery, and I mean last surgery. Finally starting to get over it. I have been back to work full time since November, albeit I work from home.

Glad to hear you are doing so well so soon. Whatever your doing - keep doing it.

[Janet_Bellware]

:) What great correction and what impressed me most was that your surgeon maintained your natural lordosis in your lower back.

I had my initial correction in 1973 w/ Harrington rods and had a great outcome, but had 2 more rods placed in my lumbar region in 1997, which produced severe flat-back syndrome. I'm an ICU RN and still work, but I'll tell you, I hurt and really bend forward at the end of my 12 hr. shifts.

Anybody out there have osteotomies done to correct flat-back, and how was the outcome? Would you do it over? How long were you off work after surgery?

Thanks, and good luck to all.

Janet_Bellware

[Theresa]

Hi Janet,

Here is another forum that is about Flatback (http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Flatback Revised/). Pretty much everybody there has had some kind of surgery to fix their Flatback. Alot of them have flatback due to the Harrington Rods. Then there is me and a few others that have flatback due to balance issues or hip flexion contractures. You will find many pictures in the photo section, and discussions on different doctors.

[CHRIS WBS]

WOW! Theresa, did you get screwed!

[Janet]

Chris - HaHaHa!

Maybe Berta can relate to this one: First getting screwed, then getting laid soon after.

[Theresa]

Uh Oh!!! The comedians are coming out!!!!!

[PNUTTRO]

So I shouldn't comment on your beautiful heart in the front view xray?

My back is Sooooooo flat compared to yours. My fusion is a little shorter--the next surgery will take it to S1.

p

[Theresa]

Hi P,

Can you really see the heart or are you just playing around? If you can see it, where is it?

Hopefully when you have your next surgery your back won't be so flat. This is why I think it is so important to see a doctor in person when you are considering doing a revision. Some folks just send in their x-rays for an evaluation. According to my doctors, when you just look at my x-rays quickly you don't see flatback because I did have a curve there. But when they looked at me in person, then looked at the x-rays harder and measured the C7 to the sacrum I was definetly forward quite a bit. One thing I remember reading from Dr. LaGrone somewhere on the internet that you also have to take into consideration the amount of lordosis curve someone has before the surgeries. If someone naturally has a larger than normal lordosis curve you need to try to keep it at what it was.

[BackTalk]

I think I have shared this before, but I have some what of a before and after shot.
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e232/jlazyh/tn_BA.jpg

[Cakedec]

You look very much improved. It's almost a year and half now. How do you feel?

Deb
surgery 7/24/06
T5-L5
for s curve T72, L77

[crepehanger]

those pics and xrays are amazing !!! how's your recovery been? what an amazing correction you have! thanks for posting them again...Lisa

[BackTalk]

You look very much improved. It's almost a year and half now. How do you feel?

Deb
surgery 7/24/06
T5-L5
for s curve T72, L77
It has been great. To be able to once again feel good about how I look as well as feel. Although my world crashed a few weeks ago. I started haveing low back pain so bad I couldn't walk. Then I started bending at the waste and could not stand straight without causing pain like I have never felt. Ok, off to the doctor for an x-ray. I have rods broken in 3 places and a broken cross brace. The rod that is broken on the left side moves around alot and now is or has just about broken threw the skin. I have never ever had pain like this. I am on some heavy pain meds but all that seems to do is drug me up to where I just don't care if it hurts, but the pain is still there. The kicker is I can't get in to have it replaced untill the 30th of this month. That is a long time to try and endure this oweeee. Here is a picture of what has broken. I didn't mean to hijack this post so I will stop. I will keep you up to date later in a new thread.
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e232/jlazyh/tn_broken.jpg

[crepehanger]

how on earth did those rods break? I would think that would constitute emergency surgery to minimize the tissue damage- i sure hate to see you having so much trouble ! Lisa

[PNUTTRO]

Theresa.

Your heart can be seen in this image: x-ray 2 May 2007.jpg
Its the triangle shape that is covering your left lung. Its actually the right side of the image as if you are looking at someone else from the front.

I'll have to get a my old x-rays scanned and post them. I am pretty straight. Because I don't have any records of my back before surgery, I don't know what my lumbar curve should be. And because my fusion only goes to L3, I have somewhat of a lumber curve below it.

I have a photo of myself leaning over to kiss my niece, my back looks like a table.

p

[Theresa]

Hi P,

I see it now!!! In the first x-ray it's on the left hand side right? I must have scanned that last x-ray in backwards because what is left of my curves are going the wrong way in that picture.

Thanks!!!